Air quality

Traffic emissions are now the major threat to clean air. Petrol and diesel vehicles emit a wide variety of pollutants: carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, particulate matter, and volatile organic compounds. These have an impact on our health, causing and worsening heart and lung diseases.

The Oxford Centre Roadside station in the basement of Oxford town hall measures the concentrations of nitric oxide, nitrogen dioxides and NOx as NO2 every hour. In 2015, NO2 exceeded 200 μg/m3 twice and 150 μg/m3 23 times. In 2016, it has so far exceeded 150 μg/m3 once.